BLOG TOUR: The Cat and the Christmas Kidnapper (Conrad the Cat Detective Book 4) - L T Shearer

Join Lulu Lewis, a retired detective with a knack for uncovering secrets, and Conrad, her extraordinary talking cat, as Christmas cheer gives way to festive fear . . .

Hoping for a relaxing festive break, Lulu sets off with Conrad on her canal boat, The Lark, to the picturesque city of Bath to visit friends. But when the pair arrive, they learn of a ruthless kidnapping plot that is plaguing parents in the area.

As the kidnappers fuel panic with further demands, the pair must unravel clues faster than Conrad can charm with his witty banter. That is, if they are to stand any chance of bringing the criminals to justice in time to save the holidays . . .

The Cat and the Christmas Kidnapper by L T Shearer is a charming cosy crime read for fans of Richard Osman and S. J. Bennett.

 

What did I think?

As soon as I saw that L T Shearer had released a new book, I couldn't wait to read it as I absolutely adore Conrad and Lulu.  I actually started this series at book 3, The Cat Who Cracked a Cold Case, and you can definitely read The Cat and the Christmas Kidnapper as a standalone as it explains how Conrad came into Lulu's life.

Lulu is a former detective superintendent and she is spending her retirement living on her barge and travelling on the relaxing inland waterways.  Oh, and she has a talking cat called Conrad!  Or more accurately, Conrad has a human!  Lulu may have retired but she still has a nose for sniffing out crime with Conrad's help (he has a much better sense of smell, after all).

I couldn't put this book down once I picked it up and started and finished it on the same day.  I was really torn between racing through the pages as I was enjoying it so much and slowing down to savour every word and extend my time with Conrad.  The kidnapping story was too gripping though so speed reading won.

The Cat and the Christmas Kidnapper is an intriguing and compelling cosy crime that is impossible to put down.  It's beautifully written with a clever plot, well-developed characters and a gripping police investigation.  It's a wonderful, charming and original book that will be a delight to find in your Christmas stocking this year.  Very highly recommended.

I received a gifted hardback to read and review for the blog tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

Buy it from:

UK.Bookshop.org

Amazon

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The Book Lovers - Steve Aylett

The kidnap of a rebellious heiress leads Inspector Nightjar into a steampunk underworld of brain love, greed and revolution. Can the Raven Method uncover the big Truth? What powers Thousand Tower City? Why are books telling unfamiliar stories? How cosy is anarchy?

Steve Aylett, author of LINT (chosen by Stewart Lee on R4's A Good Read) and Slaughtermatic, returns in this fizzing caper about “the good sin of thinking for yourself”.

"In the whole of language there is nothing like Steve Aylett, and The Book Lovers is his most relentless assault yet on our prissy synapses. Every sentence is a nifty seizure that will slug his reader through the printed page into a better and less reasonable world, a fugue-state heaven of excruciating beauty that spends dazzling insight as though it were chocolate money. Utterly astonishing, and possibly some manner of police procedural. Read this now before it happens." — Alan Moore, author of Watchmen

"Every sentence is a wonderland, every phrase a treat. No one writes like Steve Aylett. I am so glad that he is back. With each book it is as if he changes the possibilities of our imagination and populates your mind with new shapes and forms." — Robin Ince, comedian, author, broadcaster and co-host of the award-winning Radio 4 series The Infinite Monkey Cage with Professor Brian Cox.

“Aylett is the greatest absurdist of our age and worthy of comparison with William Burroughs – elegant, witty and absolutely his own writer. Lay back and immerse yourself in this wonderful book. Wise – wonderful – hilarious! Entertainment for everyone who believes there is nothing worth reading any more!” — Michael Moorcock

 

What did I think?

Never has the phrase 'What have I just read?' fit a book more, as that's what I actually said (in a good way) when I finished reading The Book Lovers.  It feels just like falling down the rabbit hole into a wonderful wacky world created by the imaginative mind of Steve Aylett.  

The first line is an absolute belter and I just have to share it here: 

'A book is like you and me – glued to a spine and doing its best.'

There are so many other lines I could share as I noted down loads of favourites but I don't want to spoil the book for other readers.  The writing is incredibly poetic and hypnotic, drawing me in and holding my attention throughout.

 

The story revolves around the kidnap of heiress Sophie Shafto and Detective Inspector Nightjar who is investigating the case.  Steve Aylett takes the reader on a journey through a world filled with books, mystery and adventure as we find out what happened to Sophie.

Steve Aylett has a very unusual and unique writing style and The Book Lovers is like nothing I've ever read before.  It reminded me of a mixture of Lewis Carroll, William Shakespeare and a sprinkling of Spike Milligan as I didn't know what was going on most of the time but I also couldn't tear my eyes away from the page.  

It's impossible to describe The Book Lovers but you could definitely say that it is highly original and completely unique.  It is also bold, bonkers and incredibly mesmerising; it's well worth a read just to appreciate the incredibly poetic prose.

Many thanks to Steve Aylett for sending me a gifted copy to read and review; this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

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BLOG TOUR: Behind Closed Doors - Carol Wyer

Two kidnappings, thirty years apart. Can Stacey face her own dark past in order to save her stepdaughter?

When Stacey’s ex-husband turns up on her doorstep begging her to help save his kidnapped thirteen-year-old daughter, Lyra, the terror is all too familiar. Stacey’s own violent kidnapping thirty years ago was never solved, and while a severe case of amnesia spares her from recalling the specific horrors, she remembers enough…

Stacey knows her father never paid the ransom—she has the missing pinkie finger to prove it. She knows she was only saved because of an anonymous tip-off to the police. And she knows her captor was never apprehended.

Lyra’s kidnappers have made it clear the police must not get involved. But Stacey can’t shake the eerie similarities between the two cases, and she’ll use whatever she can, from her journalistic powers to her shady contacts, to save Lyra from the same nightmare. Desperate to find any link between Lyra’s abduction and her own, Stacey forces herself to revisit her forgotten, traumatic past for clues.

But can she make sense of the terrible secrets she unearths in time to save Lyra? And if she does, is she ready to face her own tormentor?

 

What did I think?

I'm a huge fan of Carol Wyer's novels so I was very excited to read her new novel, Behind Closed Doors and I'm delighted to say that I was not disappointed.  

When Stacey's stepdaughter Lyra is kidnapped, Stacey is forced to revisit her own kidnapping 30 years earlier as the key to finding Lyra is buried deep in Stacey's past memories.  There's a real race against time feel that keeps the pages turning rapidly; if it's the same kidnapper, then we know they're serious as Stacey has the scars to prove it.

As Stacey tries to recover suppressed memories, it creates a dual timeline as the reader finds out what happened to Stacey in 1992 as well as experiencing Lyra's spookily similar kidnapping in 2022.  I was constantly wondering whether it was the same kidnapper or just someone who knew enough about Stacey's past to become a copycat.  You'll have to read it for yourself to find out which one it was!

Behind Closed Doors is gripping, intriguing and incredibly tense.   Once again, Carol Wyer had me on the edge of my seat as I raced through another one of her fantastic page-turners.  A recommended read.

I received a gifted copy to read and review for the Instagram tour; this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

Buy it from Amazon

About the author:

USA Today bestselling author and winner of The People's Book Prize Award, Carol Wyer's crime novels have sold over one million copies and been translated into nine languages. 

A move from humour to the 'dark side' in 2017, saw the introduction of popular DI Robyn Carter in Little Girl Lost and proved that Carol had found her true niche.

February 2021 saw the release of the first in the much-anticipated new series, featuring DI Kate Young. An Eye For An Eye was chosen as a Kindle First Reads and became the #1 bestselling book on Amazon UK and Amazon Australia. 

Carol has had articles published in national magazines 'Woman's Weekly', featured in 'Take A Break', 'Choice', 'Yours' and 'Woman's Own' magazines and the Huffington Post. She's also been interviewed on numerous radio shows discussing ''Irritable Male Syndrome' and 'Ageing Disgracefully' and on BBC Breakfast television.

She currently lives on a windy hill in rural Staffordshire with her husband Mr. Grumpy... who is very, very grumpy. When she is not plotting devious murders, she can be found performing her comedy routine, Smile While You Still Have Teeth.

To learn more, go to www.carolwyer.co.uk, subscribe to her YouTube channel, or follow her on Twitter: @carolewyer

Follow her at:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Carol-E-Wyer/221149241263847 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/carolwyer/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/carolewyer 

Website : https://www.carolwyer.co.uk

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BLOG TOUR: The Prisoner - B.A. Paris

THEN

Amelie has always been a survivor, from losing her parents as a child in Paris to making it on her own in London. As she builds a career for herself in the magazine industry, she meets, and agrees to marry, Ned Hawthorne.

NOW

Amelie wakes up in a pitch-black room, not knowing where she is. Why has she been taken? Who are her mysterious captors? And why does she soon feel safer here, imprisoned, than she had begun to feel with her husband Ned?

 

What did I think?

You're always guaranteed a good read with a B.A. Paris book and The Prisoner is no exception.  This is one twisted tale and once I picked it up I couldn't put it down.

In a rags to riches story that would make Cinderella envious, Amelie goes from sleeping on the streets to sleeping in the luxurious bed of the most eligible bachelor in London.  Marriage to Ned Hawthorne should be everything Amelie has ever dreamed of but nothing is as it seems...and then Amelie is kidnapped.

I could almost feel Amelie's anguish and fear as I experienced every moment of her captivity with her.  I loved how she showed amazing strength of character and refused to give up.  The ransom request is ingenious - as a numbers person myself, I thought it was very clever and had never really considered such a thing before.  That's a virtual round of applause right there!

Fast-paced, gripping and completely addictive, The Prisoner is pure escapism (if you'll pardon the pun).  Maybe the characters make questionable decisions and perhaps some things seem unlikely to happen in real life but this is fiction and hugely entertaining fiction at that.  

I received an ARC to read and review for the blog tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

Buy it from Amazon

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BLOG TOUR: She's Mine - A. A. Chaudhuri

 

Twenty years ago, Christine Donovan took a call she should have ignored while shopping. In those few seconds while her back was turned, her toddler, Heidi, was kidnapped. She’s never been seen again.

Despite having two other children with husband Greg, Christine remains guilt-stricken that her neglect caused her child to be stolen, while haunted by a secret that consumes her.

Just as she takes measures to finally heal, a note is posted through her door, with the words she has always longed to hear: Heidi isn’t dead.

Christine might finally get the answers she craves - but what she doesn’t know is that finding her daughter will uncover dark secrets close to home.

In seeking the truth, Christine might destroy everything that she loves … so how far is she willing to go to find Heidi?

With a truly jaw-dropping end twist, She’s Mine is a dark, scandalous, and gripping read from a major new talent in psychological thriller writing. For fans of Harriet Tyce, C.L. Taylor and Apple Tree Yard.

What did I think?

I loved A. A. Chaudhuri's legal thrillers that I listened to on audiobook so I was really excited to read her debut psychological thriller She's Mine and what a cracker it is!  It's so gripping that it blew my reading plans out of the water and I raced through it a lot quicker than I had planned.  Even though I thought I had it all worked out (and of course I really hadn't) I just couldn't put it down.

I had conflicting emotions for Christine, whose daughter Heidi disappeared from a department store when she was a toddler.  Of course I felt sorry for Christine as her life changed irreparably the moment that Heidi was taken and her pain and guilt damaged all of her relationships, but Christine was far from the perfect mother.  I don't want to spoil the plot by saying any more than that as you really need to read this book for yourself to experience all of the shocks and surprises.

It's heartbreaking to see how one terrible event can damage a family so badly and I would be lying if I said it hadn't crossed my mind that Christine only had herself to blame.  Karma is indeed a b!tch, but even more so when it's manipulated.  Christine and her family would be stronger together but they are broken beyond repair and somebody is out to destroy them...

Gripping and twisty doesn't even come close to describing this fantastic book.  With characters you will love to hate, it's impossible to put down and even when you think you have it all worked out, there are still more surprises in store.  A. A. Chaudhuri is super-talented and she's fast becoming one of my favourite authors, so if you haven't discovered her novels yet make sure you pick up a copy of She's Mine.  

I received a digital ARC to read and review for the blog tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

Buy it from Amazon

About the author:

A. A. Chaudhuri is a former City lawyer. After gaining a degree in History at University College London, she later trained as a solicitor and worked for several major London law firms before leaving law to pursue her passion for writing. She is the author of The Scribe and The Abduction, books 1 and 2 of her Kramer & Carver legal thriller series featuring the feisty Maddy Kramer, also published in audio. Her first psychological thriller with Hera Books, She's Mine, will be published in 18th August 2021. Represented by Annette Crossland of A for Authors Literary Agency, she lives in Surrey with her family, and loves films, all things Italian and a good margarita!

#1 Amazon Australia Amateur Sleuth Mysteries (Aug '19); #1 Amazon Canada Women Sleuth Mysteries; (Aug '19) top 10 Amazon UK Legal crime thrillers (Aug '19); #1 Amazon Australia Legal Thrillers (November '19)

Find more info at:

https://aachaudhuri.com/

https://www.facebook.com/AAChaudhuri/

https://twitter.com/AAChaudhuri

https://www.instagram.com/a.a.chaudhuri/

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BLOG TOUR: Pressure Chamber - Nir Hezroni

 

Four babies have been kidnapped from four different maternity wards in Tel Aviv. With not a single lead to follow, all investigators can do is wait patiently for the suspect they call ‘the Babysitter’ to make their next move.

Four weeks earlier, on a quiet street, a medical student went out for a run and was killed by a hit and run driver. Then a second student went out and never returned. Daphne Dagan, a young, talented police officer, is first to realise that the hit and run and the kidnappings are related.

But she's also in the middle of her own battle - a recurring nightmare that's been haunting her for years. The strain of dealing with a real-life killer and kidnapper during the day, and the man who murders her in her sleep each night drive her into a place of darkness and despair from which she must escape if she is to catch ‘The Babysitter’.

What did I think?

Pressure Chamber is the first novel translated from Hebrew that I have read and I absolutely loved it.  Absolutely nothing has been lost in the wonderful translation by Steven Cohen as Nir Hezroni's outstanding novel gripped me from the start.

With a hit and run, a missing student and four stolen babies, police officer Daphne Dagan has a very intriguing case on her hands.  Daphne already has a lot on her plate with a recurring nightmare haunting her dreams.  As Daphne explores lucid dreaming to get to the root of her nightmares, an added layer of suspense is added to the story as you're never quite sure what is real and what is imagined.  I loved exploring Daphne's dreams although I do find lucid dreaming very scary.

The plotline surrounding 'The Babysitter' is simply outstanding.  The execution of the crime and the reasoning behind it is highly original and completely breathtaking.  It's incredibly twisted but that's what's so brilliant about it.  I don't want to say anything about the plot itself for fear of inadvertently releasing spoilers as it's definitely one you want to experience first-hand for yourself.

Nir Hezroni's writing is stunningly vivid and I was totally immersed in the novel from beginning to end.  I know that his first two thrillers have been optioned for film and I wouldn't be surprised if Pressure Chamber joins them.  The book had me on the edge of my seat and I couldn't read it fast enough so I can imagine the film being equally gripping, tense and suspenseful.

Pressure Chamber is ingeniously twisted, highly original and completely absorbing.  It's so fast-paced and compelling that I couldn't put it down and read it much quicker than I expected.  I'll certainly be checking out Nir Hezroni's earlier work.  Pressure Chamber is absolutely brilliant and highly recommended.

I received an ARC from the publisher to read and review for the blog tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

Buy it from:

UK.Bookshop.org

Amazon

About the author:

Nir Hezroni was born in Jerusalem. His first two thrillers, were sold in 2-book deals in six territories and have been optioned for film by Sony Pictures Television Inc. He now lives with his family near Tel-Aviv.

Twitter: @nirhezroni

Instagram: @nirhezroni

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The Girl on the Platform - Bryony Pearce

 

A missing child. A single witness.

I am the girl on the platform.

When new mother Bridget catches her train home from London, she witnesses something terrible: a young girl is taken from the platform, right before her eyes. 

No one knows where I am.

But no one is reported missing and with Bridget the only witness, she is written off as an attention seeker. Nobody believes her – not even her own husband.

Can you find me? 

But Bridget knows what she saw, and becomes consumed with finding the little girl. Only she can save the child’s life… but could delving into the mystery cost Bridget her own?

A dark and absorbing thriller with the impact of memorable series like Broadchurch or The Missing, perfect for fans of The Girl on the Train and Erin Kinsley’s Found.

What did I think?

Wow!  What a brilliant debut from Bryony Pearce; I simply couldn't put it down and read it over a 24 hour period.  I have to admit that when I first saw the title I thought it was an attempt to piggyback on the success of The Girl on the Train (even the synopsis mentions it) but The Girl on the Platform is a fantastic book in its own right.  

Bridget has returned to work after her pregnancy, with her husband Tom being a stay at home Dad for baby Alice.  The pregnancy has left Bridget with a body she no longer recognises and vehemently despises which knocks her personal confidence.  As she travels home from work one evening on the train, she sees a young girl being bundled into a white van against her will.  Appealing to the other passengers to confirm what she saw, not one person can corroborate her story, leaving the police and her family questioning whether she really saw anything at all.

It's not surprising that nobody saw anything out of the train window; most people have their heads down engrossed in their various screens these days.  I really admired Bridget for not bowing to peer pressure and standing up for what she believed in, even though she was the only one.  I believed her completely at first but as the story progresses and Bridget is painted as as increasing unreliable character, I could feel doubt creeping into my mind over what Bridget saw that night.

So very addictive, it's impossible to put The Girl on the Platform down once you pick it up.  The plot is outstanding and even though I worked some of it out quite early on, I still absolutely loved it.  This is such an accomplished debut that I am already excited to see what Bryony Pearce writes next; remember that name as she is definitely one to watch.

Very highly recommended and undoubtedly a five star rating for this superb thriller.

My rating:

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BLOG TOUR: The Rift - Rachel Lynch

To save one life, she risks many others.

Working for the Royal Military Police, Major Helen Scott is used to rapid change. On a posting to Paris she oversees security for a NATO summit in the city, yet has barely begun before her presence is demanded at Interpol headquarters in Lyon.

Helen’s orders are to locate a kidnapping victim – the eldest son of oil magnate Khalil Dalmani. The main suspect is Fawaz bin Nabil, whose fortune has been made from illegal trade familiar to the intelligence agencies.

Helen knows the pain of loss and won’t rest until Khalil’s child is found. Along the way, she crosses paths with old faces and forms new alliances. But who will betray her trust?

A stunning new thriller from the author of the acclaimed DI Kelly Porter novels and a rising star in British crime fiction.

 

What did I think?

Rachel Lynch has been on my radar for quite some time as I have gradually been collecting her DI Kelly Porter novels but unfortunately I haven't read any of them yet.  The author's outstanding reputation drew me to The Rift before I had even read the blurb and I have to say that this book is even better than I expected.

Incredibly well written, this is a book that grabbed me from the start and didn't let go.  I loved the character of Major Helen Scott; she's not only brilliant at her job, she has had to overcome sexism in the workplace and she has had to deal with her own grief after suffering a terrible tragedy.  Of all this makes Helen more human and relatable, enabling her character to virtually leap out from the page.  I have my fingers crossed that this isn't the last we'll hear of Major Helen Scott.

I don't want to say too much about the plot other than to say it is breathtakingly brilliant.  I don't know whether that sort of thing is possible but it's certainly very believable and incredibly scary.  I even jumped in shock towards the end and I found myself holding my breath as the vivid and dramatic scene played out in front of my eyes.

One thing to pay attention to is the exotic names of the characters.  I wish I'd taken a note of some of the names because it sometimes caused me a little bit of confusion as to which side they were on.  It's not a criticism of the book at all as I think this is mostly down to me reading kindle books in bed just before I go to sleep so my concentration levels aren't at their peak.

Blisteringly fast-paced and completely gripping, The Rift is a fantastic read; it's like a whole series of 24 squeezed into one book with a strong female lead who shows Jack Bauer how it should be done.  I'm really looking forward to reading more Rachel Lynch books so it's lucky for me that I already have her whole back catalogue sitting on my bookshelf.

I received a digital ARC to read and review for the blog tour and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

Buy it from:

Amazon UK

Book Depository

Waterstones

Foyles

Kobo

Google Books 

About the author:

Rachel Lynch grew up in Cumbria and the lakes and fells are never far away from her. London pulled her away to teach History and marry an Army Officer, whom she followed around the globe for thirteen years. A change of career after children led to personal training and sports therapy, but writing was always the overwhelming force driving the future. The human capacity for compassion as well as its descent into the brutal and murky world of crime are fundamental to her work.

Social Media:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/r_lynchcrime 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Rachel-Lynch-Author-104835661648876 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rachellynchcrime/ 

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The Shadow Man - Helen Fields

 

He collects his victims. But he doesn’t keep them safe.

Elspeth, Meggy and Xavier are locked in a flat. They don’t know where they are, and they don’t know why they’re there. They only know that the shadow man has taken them, and he won’t let them go.

 

Desperate to escape, the three of them must find a way out of their living hell, even if it means uncovering a very dark truth.

 

Because the shadow man isn’t a nightmare. He’s all too real.

 

And he’s watching.

What did I think?

I've bought Helen Fields' DI Callanach series over the years but I haven't had time to read any of them yet so I made sure that The Shadow Man, her new standalone thriller, didn't linger on my TBR pile for long.  It didn't linger in my hands long either as once I picked it up I couldn't put it down!

The character pairing of forensic psychologist Dr Connie Woolwine and DI Brodie Baarda is electric, not in a sexual chemistry kind of way but more the way they complement and challenge each other.  I loved Connie's sarcasm and wit above all but she also suffers from achromatopsia (an inability to see colours) which heightens her other senses and sometimes makes her actions look very weird.  It's absolute genius of Helen Fields to give Connie this condition; who best to seek out the shadow man than a woman who only sees light and dark?

Woolwine and Baarda are investigating a murder and a spate of abductions in Edinburgh.  In an unusual twist, the reader knows the identity of the perpetrator so there's no guessing whodunit or a big reveal involved, but surprisingly it doesn't make it any less gripping.  Fergus is the most chilling character I have come across in a long while; he is cold and emotionless as he collects his victims for his bizarre tableau.  He is so vividly described (with a rather amusing likeness to a character in a film) that it made my skin crawl whenever he appeared.  

Helen Fields sure does have a way with words; she not only creates exceptional characters and gripping storylines but she adds elements of dark, dry humour that makes her book stand out from the crowd.  The whole book is outstanding from beginning to end and I didn't want it to finish but I couldn't slow down my reading either...and so begins my addiction to Helen Fields' writing.  Luckily I have more of her books to keep me going!

Chilling, creepy and compelling, The Shadow Man will get under your skin and creep you out but you will not be able to tear your eyes away from the page.  Highly recommended reading, if you're brave enough.

I received an ARC from the publisher to read and review; all opinions are my own.

My rating:

Buy it from:

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BLOG TOUR: The Choice - Alex Lake

A kidnap…

Matt Westbrook only turned his back for a moment. But when he looks around, his car – with his three young children inside – has vanished.

A ransom…

Panicked, Matt assumes a car thief has got more than he bargained for, but then he starts to receive text messages: This is a kidnap. If you want to see your children again, you will exchange them for your wife.

A choice…

Matt and his wife Annabelle are horrified. They can’t involve the police, or their children will be killed. Which means they have to choose: Annabelle, or their children. Either option is unthinkable. But one is inevitable. And they have only hours to make their decision… 

What did I think?

It is every parent's worst nightmare to have their child go missing, but the anguish is tripled when Matt loses all three of his children.  What a plonker!  He thought they'd be fine left in the car for a few minutes when he popped into the shop but when he returns his car and his children are gone.  What a fantastic start to The Choice.  It starts at breakneck speed and doesn't let up; I certainly couldn't read it fast enough.

When Matt gets text messages from the kidnapper, not only do you think it's somebody he knows (how else would they have his mobile number?) but it's someone who doesn't want money in exchange for the kids, they want Matt's wife Annabelle.  Through flashbacks to the past, the most likely suspects are set out before us and by some miracle I actually guessed the right person.  I'm not saying it's obvious by any means; it really was pure luck as something innocuous jumped out at me and tingled my spidey-sense.  

This isn't so much a 'what would you do in the same situation' kind of book as I'm sure any mother wouldn't think twice before swapping herself for her children.  What it did though, is make you think back over your own past and think of situations you might have been in where other people seemed innocent but they could easily have been hiding an ulterior motive.  Scary thoughts indeed.

Taut, tense and suspenseful, The Choice is an excellent psychological thriller.  The pacing is fast and the hunt for the kidnapper is relentless making it a gripping and riveting read.  I really enjoyed it and I'm now bumping my other Alex Lake books up my reading queue.

I chose to read an ARC and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

Buy it from Amazon

About the author:

Alex Lake is a British novelist who was born in the North West of England. After Anna, the author’s first novel written under this pseudonym, was a No.1 bestselling ebook sensation and a top-ten Sunday Times bestseller. The author now lives in the North East of the US.

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BLOG TOUR: The Visitors - Catherine Burns

Marion Zetland lives with her domineering older brother, John, in a decaying Georgian townhouse on the edge of a northern seaside resort. A timid spinster in her fifties who still sleeps with teddy bears, Marion does her best to shut out the shocking secret that John keeps in the cellar. 

Until suddenly, John has a heart attack and Marion is forced to go down to the cellar herself and face the gruesome truth that her brother has kept hidden. 

As questions are asked and secrets unravel, maybe John isn't the only one with a dark side.

What did I think?

I loved this book; it's dark, skincrawlingly creepy and disturbing but so compelling that I couldn't tear my eyes away from the page.  Whilst gathering my thoughts after reading The Visitors, I began to realise how very cleverly written it is.  To stir such intense feelings in a reader is no mean feat but that is exactly what Catherine Burns has done with this, her outstanding debut novel.

It starts with a scream in the night that made all my hairs stand on end when Marion isn't alarmed but instead is worried that her neighbours might have heard it.  In just the second paragraph, Marion refers to 'them' as my stomach somersaulted at the thought of who could be trapped in the cellar.  My feelings for Marion then became confused as she remembered her childhood: a time of cruel name-calling and lacking any real friends.  Marion never seemed to fit in anywhere and my heart went out to this child-like woman in her fifties, whispering her dreams of falling in love to her toy teddies.

Marion lives with her brother, John, in the family home.  As children, John was the high-achiever whilst Marion was the disappointment, but appearances can be deceptive and it is clear that John has a very dark side.  How much of this dark side of John was nurtured by his father is unclear, but 'like father like son' springs to mind as their mother blocked it all out with her little white pills.  Now that John and Marion are older and their parents have died, it's quite scary to see how complicit Marion is in John's crimes.  The big question is: does she know what she is doing or is John taking advantage of her?  When John is taken into hospital, Marion is forced to go down into the cellar to tend to 'The Visitors' and, finally free from her brother's watchful gaze, that's when we see Marion's true colours.

The Visitors is so very thought-provoking as I think we have become a bit lapse over the years with regards to the internet.  When we first started to go online, it was new and exciting but we quickly discovered that the internet could be used to hide anybody's identity.  I remember being very wary of internet 'friends' and being frightened that they weren't who they said they were.  Despite many stories of child grooming, I think we, myself included, have become more careless and neglectful over the years by taking those online at face value; but just whose face are they using?  I would be very loathe to arrange to meet somebody I met online these days as I think more than ever that the internet is a hunting ground for sexual predators luring lonely, vulnerable and innocent people into their trap.  I've really scared myself now but I love it when a book makes me think about things long after I've turned the final page.

The Visitors is an extraordinary debut novel; it is impeccably written with an enviable ability to stir a myriad of emotions in the reader.  I have never switched my emotions back and forth so often over a character.  Very highly recommended but prepare for your skin to crawl as you encounter The Visitors in the cellar.

I chose to read an ARC and this is my honest and unbiased opinion.

My rating:

Buy it from Amazon



About the author:

Residing in Manchester, Catherine Burns is a graduate of Trinity College Cambridge. She worked as a bond trader in London before studying at the Moscow Institute of Film, and teaching film theory at Salford University. 

The Visitors is her debut novel 

Follow Catherine on Twitter @C_Burnzi

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